ANOTHER UPDATE: On Monday, Aug. 11, Noble announced he was postponing the forum to a date to be named later, saying more time would allow more people to participate.
UPDATE: On Thursday, Aug. 6, Mayor Shayne Gallo announced that on Friday, Aug. 7, he will hold a City Hall press conference to address Jim Noble’s public hearing and mayoral challenger Steve Noble’s recent platform posting on the U&D rail vs. trail question.
Kingston Common Council President Jim Noble is holding a hearing on rail vs. trail options later this month.
According to a press release issued Wednesday, the purpose of Noble’s hearing, set for 6 p.m. Monday, Aug. 24 at City Hall, “is to afford the opportunity to city residents and business owners to ask questions and give their opinion on the rail vs. trail [question] for the U&D railroad corridor.”
“This issue is extremely important for the City of Kingston,” Noble stated in the release. “We have heard conflicting opinions using conflicting facts from various elected and non-elected officials. Because of the impact on Kingston, I believe it is important to bring the two sides together in the same room to answer questions and listen to the opinions of the people of our city.”
Both Catskill Mountain Railroad representatives and rail trail proponents have been invited to participate as panelists, Noble stated. County Legislature Chairman John Parete, stated Noble, has agreed to participate in the hearing. The two will choose up to two other elected officials from the bodies they chair to join as facilitators, the release stated.
According to the release, all questions will be channeled through Noble, “the main facilitator,” and should be submitted ahead of time via e-mail to PresidentJimNoble@gmail.com. All submissions, the release states, must include the name of the person, the name of any group they represent, their address and contact information in order for it to be considered for inclusion.
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